6 Best Credit Card Processing Companies of August 2022
Helcim and Square are two of the best credit card processing companies for small businesses.
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For small businesses that want to accept credit cards, finding a credit card processing company is the first step. The best credit card processing company depends on which features are most important to your business. NerdWallet looked at factors such as:
Speed of setup.
Flexibility to accept payments in-person, online or both.
How quickly you receive funds.
Strength of customer support.
Here are our top picks.
For small businesses that want to accept credit cards, finding a credit card processing company is the first step. The best credit card processing company depends on which features are most important to your business. NerdWallet looked at factors such as:
Speed of setup.
Flexibility to accept payments in-person, online or both.
How quickly you receive funds.
Strength of customer support.
Here are our top picks.
Best Credit Card Processing Companies From Our Partners
Our pick for
Best overall
Our pick for
Best all-in-one option

on NerdWallet's secure website
Square

Payment processing fees
2.6% + 10¢Monthly fee
$0Starts at $0/month for unlimited devices and locations.
on NerdWallet's secure website
Our pick for
Best for membership-style pricing

on NerdWallet's secure website
Stax by Fattmerchant

Payment processing fees
Interchange plus 8¢ in-Monthly fee
$99/MonthGrowth Plan. Pro & Ultimate Plans available.
on NerdWallet's secure website
Our pick for
Best for e-commerce businesses
Our pick for
Best for high-volume sales

on NerdWallet's secure website
Payment Depot

Payment processing fees
Interchange rateMonthly fee
$59/MonthStarter Package. Starter Plus & Growth Packages available.
on NerdWallet's secure website
Our pick for
Best for high-risk businesses

on NerdWallet's secure website
PaymentCloud

Payment processing fees
Varies.Monthly fee
N/AVaries. You have to call to get a quote.
on NerdWallet's secure website
Best overall: Helcim
Type: Merchant account provider. Price: Volume-dependent. For merchants processing in-person retail payments with monthly sales of $25,000 or less, cost includes interchange rate plus Helcim’s markup of 0.3% plus 8 cents per transaction. For example, a business paying this rate would pay a total of 1.8% plus 8 cents if the interchange rate was 1.5%.
Helcim's pricing model is transparent, with no hidden fees. The company has well-rated customer support as well as comprehensive support resources on its site. You receive automatic volume discounts as your business grows and transactions increase. Helcim uses interchange-plus pricing with volume-based discounts, making it a particularly cost-effective option for businesses with high monthly sales.
Best all-in-one option: Square
Type: Payment service provider. Price: For in-person payments, standard processing fee is 2.6% plus 10 cents per transaction.
Square stands apart from the competition with its flat-rate pricing and end-to-end payment processing solution. This means it handles most aspects of a credit card transaction, so you don’t need to purchase a payment gateway (a payment processing portal) or point-of-sale system from separate providers.
Best for membership-style pricing: Stax (formerly Fattmerchant)
Type: Merchant account provider. Price: Monthly subscriptions start at $99. For in-person transactions, processing fee is 8 cents per transaction plus interchange fee; for keyed-in transactions, it’s 15 cents per transaction plus interchange fee.
Stax's membership pricing model can easily save businesses enough money to justify the monthly fee, especially if they have high sales volumes. Same-day funding for an additional fee and in-house 24/7 customer support also make Stax a solid choice.
Best for e-commerce businesses: Stripe
Type: Payment service provider. Price: 2.9% plus 30 cents per transaction.
Stripe enables your business to accept a wide range of online payment methods, including mobile wallets like Alipay, Apple Pay and Google Pay. Stripe also lets you offer financing options to customers through buy-now-pay-later companies like Klarna and Afterpay.
Best for high-volume sales: Payment Depot
Type: Merchant account provider. Price: Plans start at $79 per month (for up to $50,000 a month in processing). Processing fee is 15 cents per transaction plus interchange rate for the Starter plan.
Payment Depot's rates make it a cost-efficient option, especially for businesses that can qualify for the lowest rates by processing $300,000 or more per month. Payment Depot's lowest-tier plan has a cheaper monthly fee than Stax, and its customer support is well-rated on most review websites.
Best for high-risk businesses: PaymentCloud
Type: Merchant account provider. Price: Quote-based.
PaymentCloud works with businesses in high-risk industries, including those selling age-restricted products like tobacco and firearms, businesses, such as electronics resellers, that have high chargeback rates, or those that may face a higher risk of fraud, such as finance companies. PaymentCloud also provides round-the-clock customer support for businesses in these industries. Pricing depends on the level of risk involved in your business.
What is credit card processing?
Credit card processing is the act of transmitting card data from point-of-sale systems to credit card networks (i.e., Visa, Mastercard, American Express or Discover) and banks. Businesses use credit card processing companies to handle the logistics of accepting card payments.
What's a good rate for credit card processing?
Credit card processing fees typically run 1.5% to 3.5% of each transaction. For example, on a sale of $100, a business could pay $1.50 to $3.50 in credit card processing fees. For a small business, these fees can be a significant expense.
Last updated on April 26, 2022
To recap our selections...
NerdWallet's Best Credit Card Processing Companies of August 2022
- Helcim: Best for Best overall
- Square: Best for Best all-in-one option
- Stax by Fattmerchant: Best for Best for membership-style pricing
- Stripe: Best for Best for e-commerce businesses
- Payment Depot: Best for Best for high-volume sales
- PaymentCloud: Best for Best for high-risk businesses